Alice is in 4th grade and things aren't going so well. Lester tells her that they're really escaped Russian royalty and that her real name is Alicia Katerina de Balencia Blunderbuss Makinoli. When she tells her friends at school this, she finds out that "blunderbuss" means someone who messes everything up.

Alice thinks that sums her up perfectly. Whether she's accidentally messing up Lester's chances with the ladies or having a very loud stomach at a slumber party, she can't do anything right. She's pretty sure that Lester would trade her for almost anything.

Then she and Lester mess up so badly, they have to get a horrible housekeeper!

4th grade has to be the worst year yet!

I love Alice and I'm really looking forward to growing up with her. Naylor remembers the agonizing details of the age and renders them with humor, but well enough that we all can cringe along with Alice.

The Alice series has been around since I was in elementary school and there's a reason they're still heavily in print! I really recommend them for kids and for adults, especially fans of Clementine or Ramona who are looking to move up to harder (and edgier)* books.

Not that I'd really call the early Alice books edgy, especially the prequels. But this one does feature Alice learning about babies and wondering about babies growing inside you. Not sex so much, but babies. The first book in the proper series The Agony of Alice deals with periods and stuff. Presumably they'll deal with even bigger issues as Alice goes through junior high and high school. I'll keep you updated as I read them!adfa